Carl Hester will compete Uthopia for the last time tonight
Tonight’s Reem Acra FEI World Cup dressage freestyle at Olympia will be Carl Hester’s last competition on Uthopia the Olympic team gold-wining rider has announced.
But it is not clear whether the horse has been sold yet.
“It was something that was always discussed, it would always happen. I don’t own all of him so I’d always agreed that he could be sold after the Olympics,” Carl told production company Lloyd Bell.
“I am very grateful that the owners have allowed me to keep him to the Olympics because obviously without him we would not have won that historic team gold medal so this is my last show and hopefully I will be able to find a wonderful rider to take him on for the rest of his career.”
Until very recently the horse was believed to belong to Irish eventer Sasha Stewart, with Carl owning a minor stake.
But it transpired that Ms Stewart sold her share a few years ago to an unnamed investor.
“Right now I feel like it’s the end of a journey for me but its been a great one so I’m not really unhappy or upset about it because I know that someone else will really enjoy riding him,” said Carl.
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“I get pleasure from seeing other people ride my horses, which is of course why Charlotte rides Valegro.
“It gives me huge pleasure, it’s almost as good as doing it myself. It will be great to team him up with another rider and see him do well hopefully.”
And speaking about the sale of Charlotte Dujardin’s ride Valegro, Carl added: “I’m nearly at the end of my career now and I’d like to think that I can have some security and will be able to pay my mortgage off like everybody else.”
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A self-confessed newshound, farmer’s daughter and journalist of many years' experience, Charlotte worked on regional papers before joining H&H in 2007. A regular rider, she visited Ireland in 2010 to investigate the fate of Irish horses through the recession, to much acclaim, and reported from the FEI General Assembly in Rio de Janeiro in 2011. She left Horse & Hound in March 2013.